Good afternoon, friends, and happy almost-Thursday. The weekend is peering at us over the horizon as the first full week in Om El Donia comes to an end.
THE BIG STORY TODAY
Alshaya Group is downsizing in Egypt: Retail conglomerate Alshaya Group is shutting down some of its stores in Egypt due to our economic conditions, the company said in an internal note to employees, Asharq Business reports. Alshaya pointed to challenges including “USD sourcing and transferring money out of the country,” in addition to inflation pressures, according to Asharq Business.
THE BIG STORY ABROAD
It’s a mixed bag of headlines in the international press today.Concern about the region’s security after Houthi attacks on vessels passing through the Red Sea that have heightened regional tensions were shared by Foreign Minister Prince Faisal Bin Farhan in Davos. He also called for a ceasefire and for international powers to step in, according to Bloomberg. Meanwhile, Qatar and France worked out a plan to send important medication to Israeli hostages and aid to Gazans, the Washington Post tells us, starting today. Hamas agreed on the condition of no Israeli inspections of the deliveries before they enter the strip. Over in the US: the New Hampshire Republican primaries could change the narrative for runners-up Nikki Haley and Ron De Santis as it is a less conservative and more urban state than Iowa where the majority voted for the Donald, says the Associated Press.
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General Atlantic is on track to buy Actis to form USD 96 bn asset manager: US private equity firm General Atlantic has agreed to acquire London-based, emerging markets-focused infrastructure fund manager Actis. The move will add USD 12.5 bn worth of assets under management to General Atlantic’s USD 83 bn portfolio.
Fresh funds to boost our food and energy security:Egypt will receive a USD 250 mn sharia-compliant trade loan facility from the Africa Finance Corporation (AFC) and International Islamic Trade Finance Corporation (IFTC) to support Egypt’s food and oil security, the AFC said in a statement.
🌤️ TOMORROW’S WEATHER- Look for a partly cloudy day with a high of 22°C during the day and dropping to a cool 11°C in the nighttime, according to our favorite weather app.
Picasso, Rembrandtmasterpieces damaged in Seattle art gallery fire: Over the weekend, Seattle’s Davidson Galleries caught fire, damaging several artworks by Pablo Picasso, Rembrandt, Francisco Goya, and MC Escher, as well as other more contemporary artists, gallery manager Rebecca McDonald told CNN. The gallery has been taking inventory of the surviving artwork — a process which may take “weeks” — to assess the extent of the damage and the possibility of salvaging the art, although some pieces could be damaged beyond repair.
Firefighters believe that the fire was started by someone trying to warm themselves in the alley behind the gallery, which then unintentionally spread into the three-story building.
The gallery contained 16-18k pieces of art collected over the past 50 years. The oldest artwork in the collection was 534 years old, dating back to 1490, and the most recent piece was created just last week.
The damage: Experts estimate over USD 1 mn in damages, but McDonald suggests the situation could be less dire, although she refused to officially numerate the extent of the destruction until a full assessment is complete. The vast majority of the art displayed and stored at the gallery are salvageable, she says.
The reason for adult and children’s weight gain can be sitting in your lunchbox.Fruit juice — even if the label reads 100% fruit — seems to be impacting our scales and in the long-term deteriorating our family’s health, according to a study on pediatric juice consumption published in Jama Pediatrics.
Fruits are healthy when eaten whole — but fruit juices (in the servings we are having) result in a fruit “overdose.” Take this for measure: A cup of orange juice is equivalent to three oranges — which, for most of us, would not be the normal serving size of the fruit, CNN quotes an epidemiology and nutrition professor as saying. If we consumed the fruit as we had picked it off the tree, the fructose in the fruit would hit our bloodstream at a regular pace, rather than be flooded with it when we consume juice. Our bodies are clever machines, and will use our livers to clear our bloodstreams of sugar by turning them into round cells of fat and sending them to our love handles and donut-floats that have made our favorite clothes shrink.
“Whole fruits and vegetables come in packages of nutrients,” which gives us a chance to digest the fiber and other goodies that come with the fruits and vegetables. When consumed out of their natural state, it forces our body to “metabolize[s] it differently than it evolved to do so,” CNN quotes Tamara Hannon, a member of the American Academy of Pediatrics committee on nutrition, as saying.
Rule of thumb: “Eat the rainbow,” rather than drink it: We should consume less than 8 ounces (236 ml) of juice a day — and not consider it an alternative to water. The WHO adds that juices, along with similar beverages, should not account for more than 10% of one’s total energy consumption. For toddlers between 1-3 years old, it should be less than 4 ounces/118 ml, and for 4-6-year-olds they should have less than 6 ounces/177 ml, according to US national nutritional guidelines.
Thriller, dark comedy, or satire? Depends on who you ask. The Consultant is a workplace TV series on an up-and-coming gaming venture called CompWare. We’re first introduced to the company as a group of middle-schoolers tour the building, oohing and ahhing at such a cool place to work. And then, one of the pre-pubescent students draws a gun and shoots founder and CEO Sang (Brian Yoon) dead.
Before the blood even dries, in walks a perfectly coiffed, mysterious, and deeply unsettling Regus Patoff (the magnificent Christoph Waltz). Patoff is a consultant no one knew existed, who Sang seemingly mysteriously appointed controller of everything in the event of his absence.
The plot thickens as Patoff uses his intimate knowledge of the senior team members against them — which he claims he got from a records room none of them even knew existed. Sang’s mother (Gloria John), who technically succeeds him as owner of the company, never makes it to her hotel after flying in from Korea, and instead decided to turn around and go home, says Patoff.
WHERE TO WATCH- Find out what happened on Prime Video.
Related
⚽ The first round of Afcon is coming to a close: Morocco faces Tanzania at 7pm, while the Democratic Republic of Congo will go head-to-head with Zambia at 10pm as part of Group F that will wrap up the first round of the group stages.
Last night’s results: Tunisia lost to Namibia, who sealed the score with a clean goal in one of the biggest surprises of the tournament. Meanwhile, Mali beat South Africa with a score of 2-0.
Everton hosts Crystal Palace in the replay of the third round of the FA Cup at 9:45pm.
In the Egyptian League Cup:
Al Ahly vs El Masry (3pm)
Ismaili vs Ceramica (5pm)
Enppi vs El Dakhleya (5pm)
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🥐EAT THIS TONIGHT-
Dampa is a friendly no-fuss hangout in El Korba.The cozy cafe is a perfect spot to catch up with friends, grab a quick drink, or get some work done. The menu has the usual suspects, with a couple of special drinks like the Depano or custom creations.
The Greek touch is more in the aesthetics than the menu, so don’t expect any of the traditional meals or drinks — although that doesn’t make them any less appetizing. We found the Depano, which comes in three flavors (peach, blueberry, fruity), really refreshing on a sunny day. As for the caffeinated drinks, we enjoyed the cappuccino, which you can also get flavored with vanilla or caramel — but being the old-school folks we are, we opted for plain.
The owner is extremely friendly and will make you feel welcome in his space. He’ll even let you customize your drink so the choices are endless. You can then pair it with one of their sweet pastries, but for us, the drinks were the stars.
Once you’ve crafted your concoction, you can shack up on one of their tables. The space is great for a work-from-home day and offers WiFi, although it isn’t the fastest. But, the lighting of the inside area runs a little dim so if you’re looking for brightness maybe shift your operations to their sunny outside area.
If you’re not in the mood to work, feel free to grab one of their board games and battle it out with your friends. The cafe has a huge selection for your group so Dampa is well-equipped for long hangouts or whenever you want to get out of the house.
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🎤 OUT AND ABOUT- (all times CLT)
ART-
Picasso Art Gallery has opened its doors to solo exhibitionist Hicham Rahma. Each of his paintings will exhibit “mixed tales with rich folkloric elements” with “magical strangeness and astonishing interaction.” This exhibition opens from 11am to 9pm, except for Sundays, until Friday, 2 February. Click here for more information.
Doodlers, unite. If you’re interested in learning how to tell stories through comic form? Comics artist Magdi El Shafai is teaching a Flash Masterclass tomorrow, Thursday, 18 January from 7pm at 302Labs. Learn how to storyboard, perfect dialogue for the medium, and hone your panel design skills. Register here.
Practice your knitting and needling skills at a crochet workshop at the Monalisa ArtStudio. This three-hour course will teach you all the fundamentals from basic stitching shapes to making scarves. The course will be taking place every Saturday and Wednesday until Wednesday, 28 February from 1-4pm. Check out their Facebook page for more information.
Only a few more weeks until The Fujifilm festival starts on Thursday, 1 February, and ends on Sunday, 4 February. You’ll have four full days of activities, meetups, and talks, as well as a photography contest and an exhibition that you can partake in. You can bring your camera along to get a gratuitous CMOS and lens cleaning and check out the GFX 100 ii Studio on-site. Fujifilm X-Photographers and creators will be there too — don’t miss out on the networking potential. Check out their Facebook page for more information.
BOOKS-
The Cairo International Book Fair is starting on Wednesday, 24 January until Tuesday, 6February. The event will be open to the general public on 25 January from 10am to 2pm, except Friday and Saturday, when their doors will close at 9pm. The fair will be in the Egyptian Center for Fairs and Conferences in the Fifth Settlement, New Cairo.
MUSIC-
Warm up your vocal cords, gang. Karaoke Night is back at ROOM Art Space and Cafe. ROOM’s doors are open every Tuesday through to 27 February for you and your friends to belt out your favorite tunes, starting at 8pm and ending at 10pm. You can reserve your spot here.
Soothe your ears with the sound of harmonious music at the Harp classic concert with Manal Mohei Eldin on the string quartet playing pieces by Mozart and Boïeldieu. The performance will also feature Huda Abde Elazim on the flute as the guest of honor. This is a one-day concert at Cairo Opera House’s small theater on Sunday, 21 January from 8pm. Reserve your seats here.
The Cairo Opera House is reserving its Main Hall for a Rageh Daoud homage concert next Sunday, 21 January. The concert will be conducted under the tutelage of Maestro Ahmed Farag, and will kick off at 8pm. Before you book your tickets, note that there is a strict black-tie dress code for the night. Gentlemen, that means a full suit, tie included.
Brooklyn Babies are bringing Lana del Rey to Cairo. The tribute band will perform at El SawyCulturewheel on Thursday, 25 January from 7-9pm. Click here to book your tickets.
Hamza Namira will be dropping his album at a concert hosted by ZED park on Friday, 9 February at 8pm. The park’s gates will open at 2pm but the concert gates will open later at 6pm. You can get your tickets here, with the option of regular standing, VIP standing, or VIP seated.
FILM-
The Panorama of European Film is back. The annual awaited event for film lovers is running from Thursday, 11 January to Saturday, 20 January. Films will be screened at Zawya, Cima Arkan, Point 90, and Zamalek Cinema. You can find the schedule as well as other important information here.
FOOD-
If you missed the cheese fondue brunch at Villa Belle Epoque you can plan to be there next Monday or Wednesday.The brunch will be on every Monday and Wednesdayuntil 28 February from 2-6pm. The meal is reservation only and click here to find out how to book your spot.
SPORTS-
Watch the African Cup on the big screen. Mivida is hosting The Stadium, screening upcoming matches from today through to this Thursday and again on Saturday and Sunday. The Lake District is within arm’s reach in case you need to fuel up before or after the matches. More of a doer? The Stadium is also hosting sports activities you can partake in. You can book your tickets through Ticketsmarche.
The Cairo Half Marathon is taking place in less than two months: Mark your calendars for Friday, 1 March, and start stretching. Cairo Runners is bringing back a fan favorite, offering 5km, 10km, and 21km runs as well as a Family Run. Tickets are available until 27 February, giving you ample time to convince seven of your friends to join, which will get a 10% reduction in price when you register.
EVENTS-
Listen up, brainiacs. Darb15 is bringing Trivia Night back. Grab 3-5 friends and head over to Maadi tomorrow, Thursday, 18 January to test your general knowledge. If you do well enough, there may be some prizes in it for you. Interested? Book ahead of time through their Facebook page.
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💡 UNDER THE LAMPLIGHT-
Hobbies turn into danger in Death in the Ozarks: Written by Erik S. Meyers, the mystery novel follows Sally Witherspoon, an accountant-turned-biker-bar-owner in her 50s, who loves puzzles and is really good at solving them. Usually, she gets her fix by helping her fellow neighbors with little tasks like finding a lost pet or a necklace, but suddenly the stakes are higher than ever.
Sally the sleuth is determined: When her close friend and business partner Bill is found dead behind her bar, she will stop at nothing to figure out who did it. What ensues is no shortage of twists and turns and a refreshing mystery plot.
She can’t help but be nosy, and that’s why she’s a force to be reckoned with. There are a lot, and we mean a lot, of murders packed into this one, but the small-town conspiracy is a genre we can always get behind. Sally, being a likable main character for once, makes it all the easier to get into the book. We’d argue that the text could be the start of a riveting series and look forward to what else Meyers has up his sleeve.
The EGX30 fell 0.7% at today’s close on turnover of EGP 6.1 bn (106% above the 90-day average). Egyptian investors were net sellers. The index is up 7.5% YTD.
In the green: Sidi Kerir Petrochemicals(+4.3%), Orascom Construction (+2.9%), and e-finance (+2.3%).
In the red: Beltone Holding (-2.7%), Fawry (-2.4%), and Palm Hills Development (-2.4%).
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